Tag: Propulsion
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Washington state will provide $350K to support Portal Space System’s satellite factory in Bothell
An artist’s conception shows Portal Space Systems’ Supernova spacecraft in orbit. (Portal Space Systems Illustration) Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson is setting aside $350,000 from an economic development fund to support Portal Space Systems’ expansion into a new 50,000-square-foot satellite manufacturing facility in Bothell, Wash. Ferguson announced today that he’s directing the state Department of Commerce…
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Uncommon Thinkers: How Portal’s Jeff Thornburg plans to harness the heat of the sun in the cold of space
Portal Space Systems CEO Jeff Thornburg checks out the vacuum chamber where space hardware is tested. (GeekWire Photo / Alan Boyle) Editor’s note: This series profiles six of the Seattle region’s “Uncommon Thinkers”: inventors, scientists, technologists and entrepreneurs transforming industries and driving positive change in the world. They will be recognized Dec. 11 at the GeekWire Gala. Uncommon Thinkers is presented in…
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Portal Space Systems brings its solar thermal propulsion system up to full power during test
Portal’s heat exchanger thruster, known as Flare, fires up during a test in a vacuum chamber. (Portal Space Systems Photo) Bothell, Wash.-based Portal Space Systems says it has successfully tested its solar thermal propulsion system at operational temperatures inside a vacuum chamber, marking a first for the commercial space industry. The test marks a key…
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Portal Space Systems opens its doors for a sneak preview of solar propulsion system
VIPs cut the ribbon at Portal Space Systems’ HQ in Bothell, Wash. From left: U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene; Portal co-founders Prashaanth Ravindran, Jeff Thornburg and Ian Vorbach; and Bothell Mayor Mason Thompson. (GeekWire Photo / Alan Boyle) BOTHELL, Wash. — From the outside, Portal Space Systems’ headquarters looks like a standard-issue office space in a…
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Aerojet Rocketdyne wins $67M contract for Orion thrusters built in Seattle area
An artist’s conception shows the Orion spacecraft’s main engine firing during a lunar flyby, surrounded by eight of Aerojet Rocketdyne’s Redmond-built auxiliary engines. (NASA Illustration) Aerojet Rocketdyne says it’s received a $67 million contract award from Lockheed Martin to provide propulsion systems for the Orion spacecraft that’ll carry astronauts to the moon during three missions…
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NASA joins forces with DARPA on effort to demonstrate nuclear rocket for Mars trips
An artist’s conception shows a nuclear-powered demonstration rocket in space. (DARPA Illustration) The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has taken on NASA as a partner for a project aimed at demonstrating a nuclear-powered rocket that could someday send astronauts to Mars. DARPA had already been working with commercial partners — including Blue Origin, the space…
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Pentagon boosts two Seattle ventures working on nuclear-powered prototypes for space applications
An artist’s conception shows a spacecraft powered by Ultra Safe Nuclear systems. (USNC-Tech Illustration) Two Seattle companies have won Pentagon contracts to develop nuclear-powered prototypes for space applications, with orbital demonstrations set for 2027. The Defense Innovation Unit says Ultra Safe Nuclear Technologies has been tasked with demonstrating a chargeable, encapsulated nuclear radioisotope battery called…
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USNC-Tech and Blue Origin win a contract for nuclear thermal propulsion design
An artist’s conception shows a spacecraft with a nuclear thermal propulsion system. (NASA Illustration) Seattle-based Ultra Safe Nuclear Technologies and its partners are among three teams winning $5 million contracts from NASA and the Department of Energy to develop reactor designs for space-based nuclear thermal propulsion systems. USNC-Tech’s partners include its parent company, Ultra Safe…
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Accion Systems raises $11M for tiny ion engines, with Boeing HorizonX Ventures playing a lead role
Each of Accion Systems’ ion thrusters is about the size of a postage stamp. (Accion Systems Photo) Boeing HorizonX Ventures has teamed up with Shasta Ventures to lead an $11 million Series B investment round for Accion Systems, a pioneer in developing miniaturized ion propulsion systems for satellites in space. This isn’t the first time…
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Bradford Space Group buys Deep Space Industries, shifting focus from asteroid mining to propulsion
An artist’s conception shows a nanosatellite equipped with Deep Space Industries’ non-toxic, water-based Comet thruster system. (DSI / BSI Illustration) Bradford Space Group says it’s acquired California-based Deep Space Industries, which means that both of the ventures that were created to mine asteroids have now been bought up to focus on different priorities. The other…